Power naps serve as energy booster for DSC students between classes
Lucas Yates
Issue date: 4/29/09 Section: Lifestyles
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The reason people need rest is to restore the body and the brain, like rebooting a computer, and naps play a role in this revitalization, said Dr. Kirk Watkins from Dixie Regional Sleep Disorder Center, 251 W. Hilton Drive.
The human body goes through cycles of exertion and rest that must compliment each other.
"There is a natural circadian dip somewhere between 1 and 3 [p.m.]," Watkins said. "Our body has a built-in clock that says there should be a nap somewhere between 1 and 3 in the afternoon."
Watkins said people don't nap as often in this country as in other countries because people would consider them to be lazy. But there is nothing wrong with taking a nap, he said.
The difference in the length of nap changes the effect on the body because of the stages of sleep, he said. On a short nap someone gets stage one or stage two sleep, while on a long nap someone gets stage four or REM sleep.
It's important to get into the later stages of sleep, or deep sleep, which helps the most in repairing the body, Watkins said.
According to a news release by National Institutes of Health titled " 'Power Nap' Prevents Burnout; Morning Sleep Perfects a Skill," in July 2002, an hour-long nap gives people four times as much deep sleep than half-hour naps.
Ama Alo, a freshman undecided major from Hurricane, is taking advantage of getting more deep sleep. He said the best time to nap is around 2:30 p.m., starting after school and getting up just before dinner.
Halley Burtis, a freshman nursing major from Enterprise, said she researched napping and found that sometimes 2½ hours is the best amount of time to nap. It's actually easier to sleep at night after napping, she said.
The nap can play a role for DSC students in powering through midnight when a big paper is due the next day or an exam needs studying for.
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